Official Urges End To Standoff

State Commissioner Says Oak Hill Strike Affecting Retarded

Commissioner Urges Resolution Of Oak Hill Strike

July 31, 1992|By WILLIAM COCKERHAM; Courant Staff Writer

The state, saying services for the mentally retarded have been disrupted by a month-old strike by health-care workers, has stepped up its monitoring of the Hartford-based Oak Hill School's more than 50 group homes.

State Mental Retardation Commissioner Toni Richardson has also urged the Oak Hill School, a private, nonprofit organization, to go to mediation immediately to get things back to normal.

"I call on you to end this strike now by either agreeing to the cooling-off period and mediation offered by the commissioner of labor, or obtaining an agreement with your workers to return to work," Richardson said. "This is not a healthy environment for our clients and I urge you to end it now."

Guldager said Thursday that most of the problems cited by Richardson go back some time, even days before the school's more than 600 workers, members of the New England Health Care Workers Union, District 1199, went on strike July 8.

"As of today, all problems have been corrected," he said. The Oak Hill School is working closely with the mental retardation department's quality assurance monitors, he said.

A spokeswoman for the department, Virginia Allen, said Thursday that state monitors checking Tuesday and Wednesday nights did not find clients sleeping on floors any longer and reported that the school has made attempts to remedy other problems. "But all is still not well with our clients," she said.

She said the state agency will step up its monitoring of the Hartford school's group homes throughout the state to make sure they comply with regulatory standards. The Oak Hill School receives most of its money from the state.

"Our monitors are still reporting disruptions of programs, such as occupational and physical therapy, and missed medical

appointments that have yet to be rescheduled," Allen said. "The problems we're talking about vary from group home to group home, but we are still very concerned about what is going on."

Allen said the department has received many reports of clients who are upset because of the unfamiliar faces around them and miss their regular staff people.

Until this week, the state had monitored only the safety and basic health of its clients. Now, it will monitor programs as well.

Guldager said the school has hired 350 replacement workers and accepted the return of 150 striking workers since the labor dispute over wages and benefits began.

The Oak Hill School has refused an offer by the state to help mediate the dispute because it wants a promise by the union that it will not strike again until District 1199's contract expires next year, even if negotiations break down. Both the union and the state labor department would not accept those terms.

Six other health-care facilities struck by the union July 8 agreed to accept the state's 30-day cooling-off period and have been meeting regularly since July 10 to try to reach an agreement.

Guldager said Oak Hill officials and union leaders will meet today to discuss an agreement. "But I can't predict what will happen," he said.

Guldager complained that the news media has been giving only the union's side of the story since the strike began, and has started to invite reporters to visit the school and group homes.

Guldager also complained that 18 tires have been slashed on school vans and replacement workers' cars, threatening phone calls have been received and other vandalism has taken place.

"We think that is awful. It causes problems for our clients," he said.